Star Wars Episode 2: Crusaders of the Force
by Lakes
Summary: The epic saga continues in the exciting second episode of the prequels


Star Wars Episode 2: Crusaders of the Force

Star Wars Episode 2   
Crusaders of the Force 

Ten years after the events of Episode 1: 

It had been several years since Kenobi joined the war effort and now Anakin was a 20-year-old man and no longer a boy. Kenobi had always been Anakin's hero his entire life and Kenobi trained Anakin in the ways of the Jedi Arts. During his teen years, Anakin worked daily on becoming a full-fledged Jedi Knight to follow in Kenobi's footsteps. Anakin and Amidala had fallen in love and their marriage was only a matter of time . . . 

The stresses created by the wars began to take their toll on the Republic. The bureaucracy became even more unresponsive to the needs of the people and the people were tired of the constant fighting and disruptions that war caused in their lives. However, matters were to get worse. Soon the Clone Wars would begin . . . 

Ten years had passed since Palpatine became Supreme Chancellor. With pain-staking planning, Palpatine, using the power of the dark side, had risen to become one of the most powerful figures in the Republic. And for several years and under complete secrecy, Palpatine and Darth Rage trained individuals, who wanted to be Jedi but were rejected by the Jedi Council, in the ways of the dark side. The ranks of the dark Jedi began to swell into an awesome legion of evil that would one day challenge the Jedi on an even footing . . . 

To make his dark Jedi and other agents even greater in number, Palpatine massed cloned them in his clandestine cloning bases, even though cloning sentient beings had been made illegal many years earlier by the Senate. 

To speed his plan for galactic conquest, Palpatine had a vision that he needed to find ancient, lost Jedi relics and artifacts that would greatly enhance and magnify the powers of the dark side within him. Palpatine became obsessed with finding these lost Jedi relics . . . 

In order to fund his extremely expensive searches for the lost relics and artifacts, Palpatine surreptitiously approached the Mandalorian and their allies: If they would fund Palpatine's searches, then Palpatine would give the Mandalorian the cloning technology, that he had stolen from the Republic, that the Mandalorian so desperately needed to replenish their warriors. With the great riches given to Palpatine by the Mandalorian and their allies, Palpatine searched the entire galaxy for powerful, lost relics and artifacts. 

After receiving the cloning technology from Palpatine's agents, the Mandalorian and their allies quickly set up cloning bases and began to mass produce soldiers. Soon they trained and sent these soldiers to face the Republic and the Jedi. Rumors spread that the Mandalorian had managed to steal the Republic's cloning technology and were using it to turn the war in favor of the Mandalorians. 

Mass panic spread all throughout the various Republic star systems. The battle-weary star systems demanded the use of cloning to save themselves from the Mandalorian onslaught. This demand further split the Republic and the noble Jedi. 

Palpatine was able to use this discord to get the ban on sentient-life-form cloning repealed. Palpatine was hailed as a hero for his efforts. In no time at all, virtually every star sysem began to clone soldiers to match the great numbers being replicated by the Mandalorian. In the Council of the Jedi Masters, the Council agreed that under their Code; they could never condone the cloning of Jedi. When Palpatine learned of the Jedi's decision regarding cloning, he was ecstatic his plan was working to perfection. Soon the Jedi's numbers would be at a critical low and Palpatine would be ready to make his move. 

Seeking a break from the rigors of the war, Kenobi took Anakin to Yavin 4, against Yoda's advise, to complete Anakin's Jedi training. Kenobi's methods were slow, tedious and extremely difficult, Anakin was soon unhappy with his master. Anakin ran off into the jungles and came acroos an ancient temple. Inside the temple, Anakin unleashed an ancient and evil dark side spirit that corrupted Anakin. Anakin left Yavin 4 and headed to Tatooine to be with his mother . . . 

Spies informed the Republic and the Jedi that a large Mandalorian search force was closing in on finding a powerful, ancient Jedi artifact to be given to the Mandalorian's new, secret ally (Palpatine). The Mandalorian search force, with Palpatine hidden aboard their command ship, were at the end of a massive search of a star system to find the mysterious lost relic. The Republic feared the worst and quickly assembled a fleet with the Jedi to thwart the recovery of this relic. 

The Republic and the Jedi forces were able to punch a whole through the defenses protecting the Mandalorian search force. The Jedi seized the relic from the Mandalorian and were barely able to escape a Mandalorian counterattack. Against the wishes of the Republic, the Jedi destroyed the relic by firing it into the heart of a giant sun; thereby, permanently keeping it out of the hands of evil. 

Anakin found his mother on Tatooine in terrible conditions. Anakin became enraged and used the dark side to free his mother from slavery. Anakin and his mother left Tatooine to rejoin Amidala on Naboo. Upon arriving at Naboo, Amidala sensed that Anakin had changed but did not know how or in what way he had changed 

Anakin wanted return to Yavin 4, but Amidala told Anakin that Kenobi had been summoned by the Jedi Council regarding important matters concerning the Clone Wars. 

Immediately, Palpatine and his dark Jedi Master felt a great disturbance in the Force created by Anakin's unleashing of the evil spirit. Palpatine could sense the incredible Jedi potential that Anakin possessed and with the help of his dark Jedi; Palpatine called out, across the great vastness of space, to the evil spirit. The evil spirit mesmerized young Anakin and he became obsessed with exploring the powers and intrigues of the dark side. Under the guidance of the evil spirit, Anakin unleashed great hatred and anger. Anakin felt alive with the greatest power he had ever felt in his life . . . 

Anakin felt compelled to go to Coruscant and meet with Darth Sidious. The noble Jedi Council also felt this great disturbance in the Force, but had no idea how great the repercussions from this disturbance would be . . 

At the landing bay on Coruscant, Anakin felt strangely alone on this urban world. In Sidious' palace, Anakin was transfixed by Sidious' charisma, power and riches . . . 

The main focus of the Jedi and the Republic during the Clone Wars was to destroy all of the enemy cloning bases. They also destroyed any data and blueprints related to the cloning technology. 

By releasing all the hatred and anger that he could muster, Anakin quickly learned the ways of the dark side under Sidious' tutelage. The seduction of the dark side is its quick route to power without hard work or sacrifice. The dark side strips a person of their conscious; thereby, making it possible for a dark Jedi to commit the worst possible atrocities while feeling absolutely no remorse for the evil they have inflicted. With his newest and most powerful dark Jedi, Anakin Skywalker; Sidious/Palpatine returned to the Senate. Palpatine could foresee that Anakin was the key to completing his grand plan . . . 

Soon, Kenobi learned that Anakin was with a mysterious dark lord on the Republic home world and was puzzled as to why Anakin left Yavin 4 to be with such a person. Kenobi with Amidala arrived on Coruscant and confronted Anakin about his desertion. With complete arrogance, Anakin lectured Kenobi and Amidala that they did not understand the power of the dark side. Anakin refused to return with Kenobi to Yavin 4. Kenobi told Amidala that this was a great betrayal that Anakin was inflicting on them. Kenobi and Amidala left the Senate and headed for Yoda's Jedi Academy. After Palpatine finished his manipulations in the Senate, Anakin completed his dark Jedi training with Sidious/Palpatine. Anakin was one of a few who knes that Palpatine and Sidious were the same person . . . 

Kenobi reported his failure to Yoda and the Jedi Council. The greatest living Jedi, Anakin, had been lost to the dark side because of Kenobi's refusal to follow Yoda's earlier advice. The Council could foresee that Anakin would be a terrible danger as a Sith Lord or Dark Jedi . . . 

Anakin was furious that Amidala would not stay with him on Coruscant. Kenobi was mis-leading her in the worst possible ways. Anakin thought Kenobi was a fool for not understanding the immense powers offered by the dark side. Palpatine used this intense anger to further push Anakin to the dark side. Palpatine sensed that Anakin's transformation to the dark side was almost complete. 

A few months had passed and Anakin left Coruscant to be with Amidala on Naboo. Anakin asked Amidala to marry him. She said yes and they had a great wedding in the court yards of Theed Palace. Feeling tremendous guilt, Amidala admitted her affair with Kenobi and explained that she was lonely, vulnerable and was heart-broken by Anakin's betrayal of his family and friends by converting to the dark side of the Force. The only betrayal that the twisted Anakin saw was that the older Kenobi had taken advantage of him and his innocent, naive wife. The hate and anger swelled in Anakin to a zenith he had never felt before; Anakin would make Kenobi pay dearly for this great betrayal . . . 

Anakin with Darth Rage hunted Kenobi down. Anakin found Kenobi on Sullust with some of his Jedi friends. Anakin and Kenobi met face to face in a great under ground cavern which was peppered with molten-lava pools. Kenobi pleaded with Anakin to abandon the dark side and finish his light-side Jedi training under Master Yoda. Anakin confronted Kenobi with Kenobi's affair with Anakin's wife. Kenobi explained that it was an accident, but Anakin's ears were deafened by the tremendous rage that boiled in his blood. 

Kenobi told Anakin that the Amidala would never live on Coruscant with a dark sider like Anakin. Anakin called Kenobi a liar and stated that Kenobi was about nothing but deceptions and betrayals. At this point, Anakin's heart and mind had been completely warped by the evil spirit of the dark side. He was no longer the same man that Kenobi had once known. The dark side compelled Anakin to destroy his former master. In an epic duel, the two men fought the great battle between the forces of the light and the dark side. Although the Force was tremendously strong with Anakin, he lacked Kenobi's experience and patience. In a reckless tactic gone awry, Anakin fell into a sea of molten lava. 

Believing that Anakin was dead, Darth Rage attacked Kenobi and the Jedi at his side. Kenobi seized Anakin's light saber from the floor of the cavern and retreated with the other Jedi. They were no match for the mechanical Darth Rage. From out of the shadows of the great cavern, Sidious appeared and ordered Darth Rage to summon the dark side to levitate Anakin from the molten lava. Palpatine/Sidious had foreseen that Anakin would be defeated by the more experienced Kenobi. Palpatine knew, at long last, that Anakin's transformation to the dark side was now permanently burned into the very soul of Anakin. 

On Naboo, Kenobi and Anakin's wife were greatly saddened by Anakin's apparent death. Kenobi felt he was solely responsible for Anakin's fall from grace. Kenobi promised to care for Anakin's wife and her unborn child for as long as they lived. On Coruscant and in a bactu tank, Anakin was kept alive by his intense hatred and by Palpatine and Darth Rage's great mastery over the dark side of the Force. A permanent bond now existed between Anakin and Palpatine. Palpatine's dark Jedi and Palpatine could foresee that with Anakin the end of the Jedi and the fall of the Republic was now inevitable. 


End file.
